Punjab: Man who hid 1st marriage gets 10-year jail for raping 2nd wife

LUDHIANA: A local court has sentenced a man to 10-year rigorous imprisonment in a rape case. The court of additional sessions judge Shiv Mohan Garg also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on the convict. In default of payment of fine, the convict will have to further undergo rigorous imprisonment for a year.
The case dates back to April 17, 2020, when women police station in Ludhiana had booked the man for a rape.
The police had registered a case following a complaint about the man who had concealed about his previous marriage from the complainant, whom he had married for the second time. He also made physical relations on this pretext and made her pregnant.
Following his arrest on May 19, 2020, the police had sent his blood sample for DNA test. On completion of the investigation and receipt of the report, a challan was presented against the accused. During trial of the case, the defence counsel had claimed a false FIR had ben lodged against the man.
The defence had argued that the accused may be biological father of the child of the prosecutrix, but there was consent of the prosecutrix and there are no elements of rape.
The court however did not find force in the argument and observed that the consent of prosecutrix if any was vitiated as she was under the misconception on the false promise made by the accused to perform marriage with the prosecutrix and he physically exploited her a number of times.
The defence had also argued that there was sole testimony of prosecutrix which did not prove the guilt of the accused and there was no independent corroboration to her statement. The court after going through evidence on the record held that in such like cases generally there was no independent corroboration.
“The testimony of the prosecutrix if inspires confidence is sufficient to prove the guilt of the accused. It is also well settled that without any reason, no woman will put her prestige and modesty at stake and in public domain,” the court remarked.
The court held that prosecution has proved the report of CFSL Chandigarh as per which the blood sample of the prosecutrix as well as that of accused and the child born to prosecutrix were subject to DNA analysis and as per the opinion given by the CFSL, accused was the biological father of the child.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)